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Central  Topics 


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■i       Geography 


BY 


C.  A.  McMURRY 


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THE  RHINE 


CHICAGO 

A.  FLANAGAN  COMPANY 


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CENTRAL  TOPICS  IN 
GEOGRAPHY 


LOS  ;-:,:.HLES 

LLbRARY 
No.  1:    THE  RHINE 


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CHARLES  A.   McMURRY,   Ph.   D. 

Northern  Illinois  State  Normal  School 


A.  FLANAGAN  COMPANY 

CHICAGO 


Copyright  1909 

BY 

A.  Flanagan  Company 


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THE   RHINE   RIVER 

GENERAL  PHYSICAL  CHARACTER. 

The  Rhine  has  its  sources  high  among  the  narrow 
rugged  valleys  of  the  Alps.  Its  mouth,  on  the  contrary, 
is  broken  up  into  the  sluggish  streams  which  spread  out 
over  the  delta  lands  of  Holland.  No  greater  contrast 
could  be  found  than  that  between  the  brawling  mountain 
torrents  of  the  Upper  Rhine  springing  from  the  foot 
of  glaciers  and  snow  fields,  rushing  down  over  falls  and 
rapids  through  deep  and  narrow  canyons  on  the  one 
side,  and  on  the  other,  the  flat  meadow  and  muddy  canals 
of  Holland.  Between  the  steep  and  dangerous  preci- 
pices of  the  Alps  and  the  dyke-protected  low  lands  of 
Holland  the  Rhine  traverses  a  great  variety  of  country. 
Like  the  Hudson,  which  descends  from  the  forest-clad 
slopes  of  the  Adirondacks,  and  cuts  its  way  through  deep 
valleys  to  the  plains,  and  later  breaks  through  mountain 
ridges  on  its  way  to  the  sea,  the  Rhine  presents  a  beauti- 
ful series  of  changes  of  scenery. 

After  leaving  the  Alpine  gorges  and  high  mountain 
valleys,  the  Rhine  swings  round  the  eastern  bounds  of 
Switzerland  and  pours  the  combined  waters  of  its  moun- 
tain streams  into  the  broad  basin  of  Lake  Constance. 

3 


4  THE    RHINE    RIVER 

With  the  spring  floods  and  rains  the  swift  stream  carries 
down  into  the  lake  a  great  quantity  of  mud  and  sand  and 
spreads  it  out,  forming  a  delta  several  miles  long  at  the 
upper  end  of  the  lake.  Thus  700  miles  before  it  reaches 
Holland  the  Rhine  is  a  delta-forming  stream. 

A  number  of  streams  which  flow  northward  from  the 
Alps  and  Jura,  draining  the  upland  plain  of  Switzer- 
land, combine  their  waters  into  the  Aar  and  pour  them 
into  the  Rhine.  The  Aar,  with  its  branches,  drains  the 
large  lakes  of  Neuchatel,  Lucerne,  Thun,  and  Zurich. 
In  springtime  these  numerous  lakes  are  reservoirs  re- 
ceiving the  surplus  waters  of  melting  snows  and  rains  of 
the  Alps,  and  by  letting  them  out  gradually  prevent  heavy 
floods  in  the  lower  Rhine  Valley.  Like  the  Great  Lakes 
of  the  St.  Lawrence  System,  these  lakes  serve  as  reser- 
voirs, preventing  floods  in  the  lov;er  stream  and  regulat- 
ing the  water  supply.* 

From  Basel  to  Mainz  the  Rhine  flows  through  a  broad 

flood  plain  about  twenty  miles  in  width,  lying  between  the 

Black  Forest  on  the  east  and  the  Vosges  Mountains  on 

the  west.    The  Black  Forest  is  really  a  mountain  district 

whose  slopes  are  covered  with  heavy  dark  forests,  from 

which  it  derives  the  name.     From  this  rugged  wooded 

tract   are   obtained   many   of   those   large   lumber   rafts 

which  the  traveler  often  sees  floating  northward  down 

*The  Upper  Mississippi  in  Minnesota  has  lakes  and  artificial 
reservoirs  which  collect  and  hold  back  the  spring  floods  for  use 
Liter  in  the  season. 


THE   RHINE    RIVER  5 

the  Rhine  with  the  huts  of  the  lumbermen  built  upon 
them.  The  Upper  Mississippi  and  the  rivers  of  Maine 
have  similar  lumber-rafts. 

In  former  ages  this  flood  plain  is  supposed  to  have 
been  covered  with  a  lake  which  reached  from  Basel  to 
Mainz  and  Bingen,  and  extended  up  the  valley  of  the 
Main.  The  Red  River  of  the  North,  which  lies  in  Min- 
nesota and  the  Dakotas,  is  likewise  the  bed  of  an  ancient 
lake  which  has  now  become  the  richest  wheat  producing 
area  of  the  northwest.  As  the  Rhine  cut  its  gorge  deeper 
through  the  low  mountain  ridge  north  of  Bingen  this  lake 
was  drained.  At  any  rate,  there  is  at  present  a  winding 
river  gorge  about  sixty  miles  in  length  from  Bingen 
almost  to  Bonn.  This  deep  trough  through  the  low 
mountain  district  makes  the  scenic  region  of  the  middle 
Rhine.  It  is  famous  for  its  scenery,  its  legends  and  its 
numerous  ancient  castles. 

At  Konigswinter,  some  seven  miles  south  of  Bonn, 
the  Rhine  emerges  into  the  flat  lands  of  northern  Ger- 
many and,  after  passing  several  large  cities,  turns  west- 
ward and  divides  into  several  channels  which  find  their 
way  sluggishly  to  the  sea  through  Holland.  Before  the 
Dutch  built  dykes  to  keep  out  the  sea  the  marshes  of 
Holland  were  much  like  those  at  the  mouth  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi. Much  of  the  land  was  swampy  or  covered  with 
shallow  water. 

By  building  dykes   and  pumping  out  the  water  by 


6  THE   RHINE   RIVER 

windmills  the  Dutch  have  converted  many  of  these 
swampy  lands  into  rich  meadows  and  farms.  The  swamp 
lands  of  Louisiana  and  Florida  and  of  other  states  will 
be  drained  out  in  a  similar  way. 

The  Rhine  in  its  long  course  from  the  Alps  to  the 
German  Ocean  has  many  tributaries.  Chief  among  these 
is  the  Aar,  which  comes  from  the  lake-sprinkled  plateau 
of  Switzerland.  The  Neckar  and  the  Main  enter  the 
Rhine  from  the  east,  draining  a  good  part  of  South  Ger- 
many, while  farther  north  the  Lahn,  Ruhr,  and  Lippe  are 
smaller  streams  famous  in  Western  Germany.  The  Mo- 
selle is  the  chief  tributary  on  the  west,  and  furnishes  one 
of  the  chief  highways  from  the  Rhine  into  France. 

The  Rhine  basin  as  a  whole  is  one  of  the  richest  and 
most  populous  regions  of  Europe,  abounding  in  fruitful 
valleys  and  hill  slopes,  with  numerous  large  cities  as 
centres  of  trade  and  population.  Lying  as  it  does  on 
the  frontier  between  large  nations,  actually  claimed  and 
occupied  at  different  times  both  by  Germany  and  France, 
controlled  at  its  sources  by  Switzerland  and  at  its  mouth 
by  Holland,  it  has  been  the  battleground  and  theatre  of 
most  important  events  in  Europe  for  2,000  years. 

All  the  middle  and  best  portions  of  the  Rhine  on  both 
sides  are  now  strongly  held  by  Germany. 

Of  all  the  rivers  in  the  world  the  Rhine  is  most  visited 
by  sightseers  from  other  lands.  From  the  green  pastures 
of  Holland,  where  the  great  windmills  swing  their  clumsy 


THE   RHINE   RIVER  7 

arms,  pumping  the  water  into  the  rivers,  to  the  mountain 
gorges  of  the  Alps,  the  Rhine  is  interesting  at  all  points. 
But  there  are  certain  shorter  stretches  of  the  Rhine 
course  which  hold  out  unusual  attractions  to  the  tourist. 
Chief  among  these  is  the  sixty  mile  gorge  which  the  river 
has  cut  through  a  mountain  district  between  Bonn  and 
Bingen.  These  mountains  are  not  high  like  those  of  the 
Alps,  not  even  as  high  as  those  through  which  the  Hud- 
son breaks  at  West  Point,  and  Donderberg  (for  in  this 
region  the  scenery  of  the  Hudson  exceeds  that  of  the 
Rhine),  but  in  this  sixty  miles  of  winding  gorge  the 
Rhine  displays  a  changing  panorama  of  steep  cliffs  and 
wooded  mountain  slopes,  of  summits  crowned  with  crum- 
bling castle  walls,  of  terraced  vineyard  slopes,  of  medi- 
eval towns  nestling  at  the  foot  of  antique  castles,  of 
frowning  fortresses  for  the  protection  of  modern  cities, 
and  even  of  green  meadows  and  woods  in  the  bottom 
lands. 

Even  more  striking  than  the  scenery,  perhaps,  is  the 
romance  of  medieval  tradition,  and  the  thrilling  story  of 
historic  deeds  which  this  valley  commemorates.  The 
islands  in  the  river,  the  hilltops,  and  mountain  slopes 
are  decorated  with  ancient  and  modern  monuments  of 
historical  events. 

About  seven  miles  south  of  Bonn  this  highland  region 
of  the  Rhine  begins  with  the  Seven  Mountains  on  the 
east  side,  the  Drachenfels  standing  nearest  the  river  and 


8  THE   RHINE   RIVER 

lifting  the  fragments  of  its  old  castle  wall  about  800  feet 
above  the  stream.  A  railroad  climbs  from  the  village  of 
Konigs winter  to  the  top  of  this  mountain,  and  from  this 
point  one  can  look  up  the  valley  several  miles,  seeing 
the  fields,  and  meadows,  and  villages  spread  out  between 
the  slopes  on  either  side.  At  this  place  one  stands  at  the 
point  of  division  between  the  flat  lands  stretching  north- 
ward beyond  Cologne  to  Holland  and  the  rugged  hill  and 
mountain  country  through  which  the  Rhine  comes  wind- 
ing from  the  South. 

At  the  Drachenfels  we  find  ourselves  not  only  at  the 
gateway  of  a  whole  series  of  picturesque  views,  but  enter- 
ing likewise  a  region  rich  in  mythical  and  historical  story. 
It  was  on  the  slope  of  the  Drachenfels  that  Siegfried  per- 
formed his  great  feat  of  slaying  the  dragon,  and  in  full 
view  westward  across  the  river  is  the  ruin-covered  hill- 
top where  Roland  spent  his  later  years,  in  sight  of  the 
nuns'  cloister  on  an  island  in  the  Rhine,  where  his  be- 
trothed had  entered  as  a  nun,  thinking  he  had  perished  in 
battle. 

From  Konigswinter  one  has  a  choice  of  several  modes 
of  travel  up  through  the  gorge.  A  steamboat  in  the 
bright  hours  of  a  single  day  will  carry  one  to  Mayence, 
along  the  winding  river  in  perfect  prospect  of  a  rapid 
succession  of  changing  mountain  views,  of  castle-crowned 
summits,  of  steep  granite  cliffs  or  long  wooded  slopes, 
of  old  feudal  villages  nestling  on  the  narrow  margin  be- 


THE   RHINE   RIVER  9 

tween  the  river  and  the  rocks.  Every  bend  in  the  river 
brings  a  wholly  changed  scene.  Other  streams  come 
down  to  meet  the  Rhine  from  the  east  and  west  through 
deep  valleys  which  rival  the  Rhine  in  their  scenic  beauty. 

A  railroad  on  either  side  of  the  river,  piercing  the 
projecting  ridges  with  frequent  tunnels,  enables  one  to 
get  a  swift  but  unsatisfactory  glimpse  of  this  famed 
region,  but  perhaps  the  best  way  to  enjoy  such  a  journey 
is  to  take  a  carriage  or  a  trip  on  foot,  with  plenty  of 
time  to  climb  to  the  castles  and  other  lookout  points. 
One  can  also  descend  at  any  time  to  the  river  and  take 
short  journeys  by  steamboat,  landing  at  points  worth 
visiting. 

There  are  many  notable  rocks,  chapels,  and  ancient 
ruins  which  well  repay  such  a  leisurely  journey,  with 
commanding  outlook  upon  the  valley  and  surrounding 
mountains.  Such  is  St.  Apollinaris'  chapel  on  a  hill  above 
Remagen  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Rhine.  "In  the  frescoes 
adjoining  the  church  the  story  of  St.  Apollinaris  is  illus- 
trated. In  one  transept  the  picture  represents  the  statue 
of  Jupiter,  at  the  prayer  of  the  saint,  falling  from  its 
pedestal  in  the  presence  of  the  Roman  Emperor;  in  the 
other  transept  St.  Apollinaris  restores  to  life  the  daugh- 
ter of  the  governor  of  Ravenna." 

Two  or  three  miles  south  of  Coblenz  on  the  west 
bank  stands  the  castle  of  the  Stolzenfelz,  300  feet  above 
the  river,  built  upon  a  cliff  which  stands  out  on  the  moun- 


10  THE   RHINE   RIVER 

tain  slope,  and  is  surrounded  by  woods.  From  the  bat- 
tlements of  this  castle,  now  restored  and  sometimes  occu- 
pied as  a  summer  home  by  the  German  Emperor,  one 
may  view  that  deep  gorge  which  the  Rhine  has  scoured 
out.  Opposite  the  castle  opens  the  valley  of  the  Lahn 
which  here  unites  with  the  Rhine,  coming  down  through 
the  dark  wooded  hills  from  Emms. 

Between  Coblenz  and  Bingen  the  valley  is  more  nar- 
row and  gorge-like  than  further  north,  twisting  and  wind- 
ing through  the  mountains,  turning  past  the  steep  and 
frowning  precipice  of  the  Lorelei,  fabled  in  song  and 
story. 

The  black  mass  of  the  Lorelei  projects  into  the  river 
and  the  reefs  at  its  base  once  produced  a  dangerous 
whirlpool  where  boats  were  often  wrecked.  The  echo- 
ing rocks  and  the  foaming  waters  may  have  given  rise  to 
the  story  of  the  siren  who  sat  upon  the  summit  of  the 
Lorelei  and  by  her  sweet  song  lured  the  boatmen  to  de- 
struction. But  the  rocks  which  obstructed  the  channel 
have  been  blasted  out  and  a  railroad  tunnel  now  pierces 
the  frowning  rock  (as  has  likewise  happened  to  the  cliff 
of  Anthony's  nose  in  the  highlands  of  the  Hudson). 

On  a  high  rock  back  of  St.  Goar  are  the  ruins  of  the 
largest  of  the  old  robber  castles  along  the  Rhine.  It 
was  first  built  in  the  13th  century,  and  became  a  danger- 
ous nest  of  robber  knights  who  levied  tribute  from  the 
travelers  and  merchants  passing  along  the  Rhine.     Later 


THE   RHINE    RIVER  11 

the  League  of  the  Rhenish  towns,  including  more  than  a 
hundred  towns  along  and  near  the  Rhine,  sent  an  army 
against  it  and  besieged  it  for  fifteen  months,  but  wdthout 
success.  Returning  later  with  a  larger  force,  they  cap- 
tured the  castle  and  drove  out  the  robbers.  In  later 
years  it  remained  an  important  fortress  in  the  wars  be- 
tween France  and  Germany,  and  was  several  times 
besieged. 

]\Iany  of  the  castle  walls  which  are  now  crumbling 
ruins  were  originally  robber  castles  occupied  by  the  small 
princes  who  lived  along  the  Rhine  and  plundered  the 
people  who  followed  this  natural  route  of  travel. 

One  of  the  most  imposing  scenes  on  the  Rhine  is  the 
grand  bend  just  below  Bingen,  where  the  river  sweeps 
round  the  huge  shoulder  of  the  mountain.  "Here  the 
great  river  enters  the  majestic  gorge  that  has  given  the 
noble  stream  most  of  its  fame  in  weird  tradition  and  pic- 
turesque beauty.  For  seventy-seven  miles  from  Bingen 
northwestward  to  the  Seven  IMountains  the  Rhine  winds 
through  successive  ravines  and  chasms,  breaking  down 
the  rocky  ridges  crossing  its  path."     (Joel  Cook.) 

This  southern  gateway  to  the  highlands  of  the  Rhine, 
though  wholly  different,  is  quite  as  interesting  as  the 
northern  entrance  at  the  Seven  Mountains.  The  ruined 
towers  of  the  ancient  castle  of  Ehrenfels,  on  the  rocky 
slope  round  which  the  river  bends,  seem  to  guard  this 
gateway  to  the  gorge.     Down  in  the  river  directly  in 


12  THE    RHINE   RIVER 

front  of  this  castle  is  the  fabled  Mouse  Tower,  upon  an 
island. 

Across  the  Rhine  is  Bingen.  The  whole  southern 
slope  of  the  Niederwald  Mountain  is  covered  with  ter- 
races of  vineyards.  From  the  midst  of  these,  high  up 
the  mountain  slope,  rises  the  majestic  Niederwald  Monu- 
ment, built  by  Germany  at  the  close  of  the  Franco-Prus- 
sian War,  as  a  significant  token  of  their  lordship  over 
the  Rhine.  For  the  gigantic  figure  of  Germania  which 
crowns  this  monument  reaches  out  her  sceptre  of  author- 
ity toward  the  south-lying  regions  of  Alsace  and  Lor- 
raine. 

The  Rhine  gorge  which  we  have  thus  briefly  described 
leads  the  rivers  of  Europe  for  its  combination  of  scenic 
and  historic  interest.  Other  rivers  of  Europe  may,  how- 
ever, surpass  the  Rhine  in  some  particulars.  The  Upper 
Danube,  above  Vienna,  is  much  grander  in  its  imposing 
mountain  scenery,  and  its  ancient  cities  and  castle- 
crowned  rocks  may  compare  well  with  those  of  the  Rhine. 
The  Elbe  River  above  Dresden,  in  what  is  known  as  the 
Saxon  Switzerland,  has  some  imposing  cliffs  and  hill 
fortresses,  such  as  the  Konigstein  and  the  Bastei,  where 
it  breaks  through  the  Bohemian  mountains.  Some  of  the 
rivers  of  France  likewise,  with  their  ancient  castles  and 
historic  cities,  with  their  beautiful  river  scenery,  are 
almost  as  attractive  as  the  Rhine. 

In  Spain  the  rivers  have  cut  deep  valleys  in  their  de- 


THE   RHINE   RIVER  13 

scent  from  the  interior  plateau  to  the  sea  shore  and  dis- 
play great  variety  of  natural  beauty. 

In  the  United  States  the  Hudson  is  frequently  com- 
pared with  the  Rhine,  because  of  its  magnificent  scenery 
in  the  Highlands  through  which  the  Hudson  River  steam- 
ers carry  thousands  of  sightseers  in  summer  time.  The 
Hudson,  like  the  Rhine,  breaks  through  a  mountain  range 
in  order  to  produce  the  scenery  of  the  Highlands. 

The  Upper  Mississippi  also,  from  St.  Louis  to  St. 
Paul,  is  lined  with  grand  and  imposing  bluffs,  between 
which  the  great  river  winds  for  hundreds  of  miles. 

A  boat  trip  along  the  Columbia  River  from  below 
the  Dalles,  where  it  breaks  through  the  Sierra  Nevada  to 
the  Pacific,  is  far  more  grand  in  its  mountain  scenery 
than  anything  along  the  great  rivers  of  Europe.  A  voy- 
age through  the  Thousand  Islands  of  the  St.  Lawrence 
to  Montreal  and  Quebec  is  also  regarded  as  one  of  the 
great  scenic  trips.  The  peculiar  advantage  of  the  Rhine 
seems  to  be  its  location  in  the  center  of  Western  Europe 
and  its  remarkable  combination  of  natural  scenery  with 
historical  and  legendary  events. 

The  Middle  Rhine  south  of  IMainz,  winding  through 
a  valley  eighteen  miles  wide,  has  little  attractive  scenery. 
A  few  miles  east  of  the  river  where  the  Swartzwald  and 
Odenwald  mountains  descend  somewhat  abruptly  to  the 
plain,  we  again  meet  some  of  the  most  romantic  scenery 
along  the  Rhine.     Where  the  Neckar  breaks  through  the 


14  THE   RHINE   RIVER 

hills  to  join  the  Rhine  is  Heidelberg,  and  up  among  the 
forests  of  the  mountain  slope  back  of  the  town,  is  the 
most  famous  castle  of  Germany,  Like  many  other  cas- 
tles along  the  Rhine,  it  is  built  upon  a  projecting  spur 
half  way  up  the  mountain  side  and  overlooking  the  town 
and  the  valley  below,  from  a  height  of  330  feet. 

The  ground  plan  of  the  castle  is  that  of  a  great 
square,  its  outer  walls  about  twenty  feet  thick  and  sur- 
rounded by  a  wide  moat  or  ditch.  On  each  side  of  the  four 
corners  was  a  massive  tower  of  several  stories  with  inte- 
rior winding  stairways.  An  open  court  occupied  the 
interior  of  the  castle,  and  around  the  four  sides  of  this 
court  were  built,  during  a  period  of  five  hundred  years, 
from  the  12th  to  the  17th  centuries,  the  magnificent 
apartments  whose  ruins  still  surprise  the  visitor  with 
their  architectural  display.  Having  been  added  to  by 
different  rulers  during  a  period  of  five  centuries,  the 
buildings  fronting  on  this  great  court  yard  represent  a 
striking  variety  of  styles  in  architecture.  The  entrance 
was  by  a  massive  gateway  and  drawbridge  upon  the  east 
side.  The  palace  buildings,  which  surrounded  the  great 
court,  contained  the  drawing  rooms,  banqueting  halls, 
and  living  rooms  of  the  princely  family  and  their  numer- 
ous attendants  and  guards,  A  chapel  was  built  in  one  of 
the  angles  of  the  castle  where  the  occupants  and  the 
castle  folk  attended  religious  service.  In  one  of  the 
rooms  adjoining  the  kitchen  is  shown  the  remnants  of 


THE   RHINE   RIVER  15 

the  great  oven  where  oxen  were  roasted  whole.  The 
foundation  walls  are  massive  arches  and  pillars  of  ma- 
sonry, and  in  the  underground  wine  cellar  is  still  ad- 
mired the  mighty  wine  cask  which  held  800  hogsheads 
of  Neckar  wine,  and  was  in  the  fall  filled  from  the  vint- 
age of  the  neighboring  hills.  Underneath  these  gloomy 
foundations  lie  the  dungeons  in  which  unfortunate  pris- 
oners were  kept.  This  castle  is  massive  in  construction 
and  of  unusual  size,  and  was  able  to  provide  food  and 
shelter  for  a  large  garrison. 

For  several  centuries  Heidelberg  was  the  capital  of 
the  Palatinate,  the  neighboring  province  of  the  Rhine, 
and  this  castle  was  the  magnificent  home  and  palace  of 
the  Counts  of  the  Palatine,  who  took  pride  in  decorating 
its  interior  court  with  beautiful  and  costly  structures,  and 
in  building  up  its  outer  walls  and  towers  of  immense 
thickness.  By  additions  and  enlargements  it  had  become 
early  in  the  17th  century  not  only  a  princely  residence, 
but  one  of  the  strongholds  of  western  Germany.  Dur- 
ing the  fierce  religious  wars  of  the  17th  century  it  often 
suffered  bombardment  and  was  more  than  once  captured 
and  devastated.  It  has  been  said  that  it  was  "five  times 
bombarded,  twice  laid  in  ashes,  thrice  taken  by  assault 
and  turned  over  to  pillage."  It  was  again  restored,  but 
in  1764  the  great  red  tower  was  struck  by  lightning  and 
the  buildings  were  burned.  Since  then  for  more  than 
one  hundred  and  forty  years  it  has  lain  in  ruins  and  is 


16  THE   RHINE  RIVER 

overgrown  with  ivy.  But  its  walls  are  so  massive  that 
they  still  stand  tolerably  complete,  and  its  great  towers 
still  overlook  the  valley  and  the  city.  Surrounding  it 
are  shady  forests  and  beautiful  park  walks  which  are 
much  frequented  in  the  summer  time.  During  one  of 
the  sieges  the  French  assailants  planted  a  mine  under 
one  of  the  great  towers.  The  explosion  split  the  tower 
from  top  to  bottom,  one-half  of  it  falling  into  the  moat ; 
the  other  half  still  stands,  revealing  the  massive  con- 
struction and  winding  stairway  within. 

Heidelberg  castle  is  only  one  of  the  interesting  castles 
which  overlook  the  valley  of  the  winding  Neckar,  and 
farther  south,  scattered  along  the  spurs  of  the  Black 
Forest,  are  other  similar  ruins,  the  relics  of  an  age  when 
the  lords  of  the  land  sheltered  themselves  behind  mighty 
stone  walls  and  battlements.  With  the  invention  of  gun- 
powder and  the  use  of  firearms  these  old  castles,  most 
of  them  originally  built  during  the  middle  ages,  were  no 
longer  able  to  stand.  They  were  battered  down  with 
cannon  balls  or  blown  up  with  gunpowder,  and  most  of 
them  now  stand  as  ivy-covered  ruins,  telling  of  an  age 
and  customs  long  since  passed  away.  Some  of  them 
have  been  restored,  and  because  of  their  beautiful  situ- 
ation and  palatial  apartments  have  become  the  summer 
home  of  kings  or  wealthy  princes.  Such  are  the  Rhein- 
stein  and  the  Stolzenfels  on  the  Rhine,  or  the  magnificent 
palace  of  Wernigerode,  which,  standing  on  a  northern 


THE   RHINE   RIVER  17 

spur  of  the  Hartz,  overlooks  a  wide  reach  of  country 
and  the  city  at  its  feet. 

The  banks  of  the  Rhine  and  all  its  tributary  streams 
display  a  constant  succession  of  those  battered  and  crum- 
bling ruins.  While  traveling  through  the  valley  we  are 
seldom  out  of  sight  of  these  relics  of  feudal  times,  and 
three  or  four  may  be  seen  from  a  single  spot.  Even  far 
up  in  the  high  Alps,  not  far  below  the  Splugen  Pass,  is 
one  of  these  castles.  Eight  hundred  feet  above  the  river, 
and  overlooking  the  town  of  Thusis,  is  the  Hohen  Rha- 
tien  castle,  built  perhaps  as  early  as  589,  the  oldest  castle 
of  Switzerland.  It  is  surrounded  by  an  amphitheater  of 
mountains,  rising  some  of  them  8,000  feet. 

"Someone  who  has  gone  down  the  Rhine  has  re- 
corded that  from  its  sources  to  its  mouth  there  are  along 
its  banks,  crowning  the  hilltops  and  originally  controlling 
the  river  passage,  no  less  than  seven  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  castles,  formerly  the  homes  of  warlike  chiefs,  many 
of  them  renowned  in  song  and  story."     (Joel  Cooke.) 

But  the  Rhine  is  only  one  among  many  similar  rivers 
in  Europe.  The  Danube  is  likewise  a  castle-crowned 
stream,  and  the  old  ruins  that  look  down  through  its 
winding  and  rocky  gorges  have  many  a  tale  to  tell  of 
mediaeval  chivalry  and  later  history  (Richard  I.).  The 
other  rivers  of  Germany,  as  the  Elbe,  the  Saale,  the  Oder, 
and  the  Vistula,  have  scarcely  an  ancient  town  whose 
houses  were  not  overlooked  by  the  walls  of  some  high 


18  THE    RHIXE   RIVER 

neighboring  castle.  Likewise  the  Harz  i\Iountains  and 
the  Thuringian  Forest  in  Central  Germany  were  ruled 
during  the  middle  ages  by  warrior  knights  who  nested 
themselves  safely  in  their  strong  towers  on  the  hilltops 
or  mountain  spurs.  One  of  the  most  famous  of  these 
old  castles  is  the  Wartburg,  600  feet  above  Eisenach,  in 
Thuringia,  where  Luther  abode  in  retreat  while  he  trans- 
lated the  New  Testament. 

In  France  and  Spain,  likewise,  the  river  cliffs  were 
the  chosen  places  for  many  a  feudal  castle.  Even  in 
the  great  cities,  the  old  princely  burgs,  which  were  the 
original  abode  of  kings  and  rulers,  are  still  prominent 
centres  of  interest.  Das  Alte  Schloss,  in  Berlin,  the 
present  home  of  the  Emperor,  has  been  for  centuries  a 
fortress  castle  of  kings.  The  Louvre,  in  Paris,  was  orig- 
inally a  strong  royal  castle.  The  tower  of  London,  which 
still  looks  like  a  gloomy  mediaeval  burg,  w^as  long  the 
abode  of  royalty,  and  the  citadel  of  the  capital.  The  old 
castle  of  Edinburgh  is  still  the  most  interesting  fortress 
of  Scotland,  overlooking  the  city  from  its  rocky  heights. 
IMany  a  European  city,  like  Edinborough,  has  been  built 
up  around  such  a  castle,  as  Nuremburg,  Mainz,  and 
Granada.  The  far-famed  castle  of  the  Alhambra,  over- 
looking the  city  of  Granada,  even  far  excels  Heidelberg, 
both  in  its  architecture  and  historic  associations. 

In  America,  Quebec  from  its  earliest  historv  has  been 


THE   RHINE    RIVER  19 

a  hill  fortress,  and  has  likewise  figured  in  some  of  the 
most  thrilling  events  of  American  history. 

In  America  we  have  no  feudal  castles  because  Amer- 
ica was  discovered  after  most  of  the  old  European  castles 
were  built,  and  when  they  had  already  begun  to  lose  their 
importance  as  military  strongholds. 

At  the  present  time,  even  more  perhaps  than  in  its 
past  history,  the  Rhine  is  of  great  military  importance. 
The  means  of  military  defense,  however,  are  now  very 
different  from  the  feudal  castles  of  the  middle  ages. 

This  may  be  understood  by  an  examination  of  the 
fortified  city  of  Coblenz,  lying  at  the  junction  of  the 
Rhine  and  Moselle.  This  site  commands  not  only  the 
highway  of  the  Rhine,  but  the  road  leading  up  the  Mo- 
selle valley  to  France,  and  up  the  nearby  Lahn  to  Ger- 
many. The  city  of  Coblenz  occupies  a  triangle  of  low 
land  formed  by  the  two  rivers  and  a  fortified  rampart 
connects  these  just  back  of  the  town.  Until  recently 
this  fortified  wall  and  ditch  formed  an  important  part 
of  the  defense,  but  the  growth  of  the  city  has  made  nec- 
essary the  conversion  of  this  rampart  into  a  boulevard, 
and  the  real  defenses  are  the  fortified  mountain  tops 
which  surround  it.  Chief  among  these  is  Ehrenbreit- 
stein,  the  Broad  Rock  of  Honor,  which,  rising  400  feet 
in  solid  rock  front,  commands  both  the  Rhine  and  the 
mouth  of  the  Moselle  with  its  frowning  batteries.  This 
rock  has  been  made  into  a  genuine  Gibraltar  of  mili- 


20  THE   RHINE   RIVER 

tary  strength,  and  rendered  as  impregnable  as  possible. 
The  French,  in  1799,  captured  the  Fortress  of  Ehren- 
breitstein  by  starving  the  garrison,  and  followed  this  by 
completely  wrecking  the  works.  After  the  fall  of  Napo- 
leon, France  paid  Prussia  $3,000,000  for  the  damage  they 
had  done,  and  the  fortress  was  rebuilt.  "Since  the 
Franco-German  War  there  has  been  a  complete  rear- 
rangement of  the  works  on  modern  lines,  and  it  is  de- 
fended by  batteries  numbering  400  guns,  while  three  lines 
of  defenses  cross  the  neck  of  the  promontory  (back  of 
the  fortress).  The  extensive  flat  surface  on  top  of  the 
rock  is  a  parade  ground,  and  from  the  front  there  is  a 

superb  view It  is  said  to  be 

so  arranged  now  that  a  garrison  of  5,000  troops  can  hold 
it,  and  there  can  be  stored  ten  years'  provisions  for  8,000 
men  in  the  capacious  magazines."     (Joel  Cooke.) 

It  is  not  only  equipped  with  modern  guns  and  de- 
fenses, but  is  still  further  strengthened  b}^  heavy  for- 
tresses upon  the  surrounding  mountains.  Some  years  ago 
while  visiting  Coblenz  I  walked  about  three  miles  up 
the  Moselle  Valley  from  Coblenz,  and  there  began  to 
climb  a  wooded  hill  about  800  feet  in  height.  Upon 
coming  near  the  top  I  found  it  was  strongly  fortified  with 
a  line  of  earthworks  nearly  a  mile  in  circuit. 

All  the  commanding  heights  from  which  an  enemy 
might  throw  shells  into  the  city  of  Coblenz  are  covered 
with  defenses.     In  the  whole  circuit  of  the  surrounding 


THE    RHINE   RIVER  21 

mountains  there  are  twenty-six  of  these  fortresses,  and 
they  are  capable  of  sheltering  and  supplying  a  garrison 
of  100,000  men.  When  we  consider  the  enormous  ex- 
pense of  constructing  these  heavy  defenses  and  of  keep- 
ing them  in  the  highest  state  of  equipment,  we  may,  to 
some  extent,  realize  the  burden  of  military  outlay  that 
rests  upon  Germany.  All  this  costly  expenditure  is  not 
merely  for  the  protection  of  Coblenz,  but  of  the  whole  of 
Germany,  for  no  French  army  can  enter  Germany  be- 
tween ]\Iainz  and  Coblenz  without  first  taking  Coblenz. 
In  fact,  Coblenz  is  merely  a  central  link  in  a  chain  of 
fortified  cities  extending  from  Cologne  to  Strassburg. 

What  has  been  said  about  the  fortifications  about 
Coblenz  may  be  said  with  an  increased  emphasis,  per- 
haps, about  Cologne,  IMainz  and  Strassburg.  These  are 
in  themselves  very  large  and  powerful  cities,  Cologne 
360,000,  Mainz  80,000,  Strassburg  150,000  inhabitants, 
and  they  have  been  made  as  strong  military  bulwarks 
against  France  as  modern  military  science  can  devise. 
Cologne  is  surrounded  by  successive  circles  of  great 
earthworks  extending  seven  miles  from  the  city  on  both 
sides  of  the  river.  As  Cologne  lies  in  a  flat  country  these 
massive  earthworks  are  seen  standing  out  in  the  open 
wheat  fields,  mounted  with  heavy  cannon  and  fully 
equipped  for  the  heavy  and  destructive  work  of  war. 

Until  a  few  years  ago  Cologne  was  encircled  by  a 
wall  and  moat,  with  gates  and  drawbridges  leading  into 


22  THE   RHINE   RIVER 

the  country,  but  the  rapid  expansion  of  the  city  finally 
burst  these  bonds,  and  it  has  spread  far  beyond  its  old 
cramped  limits. 

An  examination  of  the  position  of  Mayence  will  show 
that  it  is  of  necessity  one  of  the  fortified  cities  of  the 
Rhine.  Commanding  both  the  rich  valleys  of  the  Rhine 
and  the  Main,  leading  to  Frankfort  and  Germany,  it  has 
been  for  many  centuries  one  of  the  most  important  mili- 
tary posts  of  the  German  frontier.  "The  fortress  covers 
a  far-spreading  range  of  outlying  works  on  the  sur- 
rounding eminences,  commanding  every  approach  and 
presenting  an  array  of  great  mounds  on  the  elevated 
heights,  sodded  with  the  greenest  grass  and  having  flower 
beds  blooming  upon  them."  It  has  been  a  fortified  place 
since  the  days  when  Drusus,  the  Roman  general,  gathered 
his  troops  here,  and  in  his  honor  the  Drusus  Tower  was 
said  to  have  been  built  in  the  year  9  B.  C.  Its  massive 
foundation,  about  forty  feet  high,  still  stands  in  the 
citadel  of  Mainz. 

The  city  of  Strassburg  is  a  still  more  striking  illus- 
tration of  military  defense,  for  it  was  captured  from  the 
French  in  1870,  in  the  last  war  between  France  and  Ger- 
many, after  a  fierce  siege  and  bombardment.  The  heavy 
defenses  of  the  French  were  battered  down,  and  the  city 
was  greatly  damaged.  Since  then  it  has  become,  with 
Alsace  and  Lorraine,  a  possession  of  the  Germans,  and  is 
protected  by  a  great   series  of   detached    forts,   one   of 


THE    RHINE   RIVER  23 

which  is  called  Prince  Bismarck,  extending  five  miles 
beyond  the  inner  defenses  of  the  city.  The  fortified  city 
of  Metz  was  also  captured  by  the  Germans  in  the  same 
war,  and  in  the  hill  country  has  become  a  powerful  centre 
of  German  strength  on  the  Upper  Moselle,  close  to  the 
borders  of  France. 

Along  the  Rhine,  therefore,  Germany  has  five  power- 
ful fortresses,  and  they  are  well  garrisoned  even  in  time 
of  peace.  Just  across  the  French  border,  as  we  might 
expect,  is  a  parallel  series  of  heavily  fortified  French 
cities,  such  as  Bel  fort,  Verdun,  and  Sedan.  When  war 
threatens,  forces  are  concentrated  at  these  fortified  strong- 
holds on  both  sides,  and  when  hostilities  are  declared, 
armies  are  pushed  rapidly  across  the  border  to  attack  the 
strongholds  of  the  enemy.  At  the  outbreak  of  the  last 
war,  of  1870,  Germany  was  fully  prepared,  while  the 
French  were  not  in  readiness.  In  consequence,  within  a 
month,  the  German  forces  had  surrounded  the  French 
army  in  Metz,  and  had  defeated  and  captured  a  second 
army,  and  the  French  Emperor,  before  the  great  fortress 
of  Sedan.  Having  either  captured  or  surrounded  these 
frontier  cities,  the  German  armies  had  an  open  path  and 
concentrated  their  forces  upon  Paris. 

Not  only  on  the  side  toward  France,  but  also  on  the 
Austrian  and  Russian  borders,  Germany  has  fortified  cit- 
ies to  defend  her  frontier,  while  they,  in  turn,  are  like- 
wise protected  against  Germany.     Along  the  Baltic  and 


24  THE   RHINE   RIVER 

North  Sea  coast  is  a  series  of  fortified  seaports  and  har- 
bors, with  a  fleet  of  war  vessels  to  engage  the  enemy. 
In  the  center  of  Germany  is  the  fortified  capital  city  of 
BerHn,  with  an  army  of  25,000  trained  soldiers  in  resi- 
dence, even  in  peaceful  times. 

But  France  for  hundreds  of  years  has  been  regarded 
as  the  most  dangerous  enemy  of  Germany.  The  French, 
under  Louis  XIV.,  and  later  under  Napoleon  I.,  captured, 
plundered  and  ruled  the  Rhine  provinces,  stabling  their 
horses  in  the  churches.  Under  the  old  Em.peror,  with 
the  leadership  of  Bismarck  and  A'on  ]^Ioltke,  the  Germans 
not  only  recaptured  Alsace  and  Lorraine,  which  Louis 
XIV.  two  hundred  years  before  had  taken,  but  greatly 
strengthened  Strassburg  and  Metz,  as  well  as  all  the 
cities  along  the  Rhine.  The  German  soldiers  now  sing 
the  famous  war  song,  "Die  Wacht  am  Rhein."  without 
disturbance   from  any   foreign  enemy. 

In  the  history  of  the  United  States,  the  river  which 
had  the  greatest  military  importance  is  the  Hudson,  which 
often  witnessed  the  march  of  armies  during  the  French 
and  Indian  wars,  and  in  the  Revolution  important  battles, 
such  as  Saratoga,  and  New  York,  were  fought  upon  its 
banks,  and  strong  forts,  such  as  Fort  Lee.  Fort  Wash- 
ington, Stony  Point,  and  West  Point  were  established 
for  its  protection.  The  mouth  of  the  Hudson  is  now 
protected  at  the  Narrows  and  on  East  River  by  strong 
forts  for  the  safety  of  New  York. 

The  Mississippi  River,  during  the  Civil  War,  was  also 


THE   RHIxXE   RIVER  25 

a  line  of  important  military  operations,  the  capture  of 
New  Orleans  and  of  Vicksburg  proving  among  the  lead- 
ing events  of  the  war.  In  the  East  the  James  River,  with 
Richmond  as  the  capital  of  the  Confederacy,  was  the 
basis  of  a  number  of  military  campaigns. 

In  Canada,  the  St.  Lawrence  River  has  also  seen  im- 
portant military  operations  and  battles,  as  at  Quebec 
and  Montreal,  and  the  citadel  of  Quebec  may  well  com- 
pare in  strength  with  the  Ehrenbreitstein. 

The  United  States,  as  a  whole,  is  far  more  fortunate 
than  Germany,  from  the  fact  that  it  has  no  powerful 
and  dangerous  neighbor  either  north  or  south,  and  tb.e 
broad  ocean  separates  her  from  the  powerful  nations  of 
Europe.  The  chief  fortified  posts  in  the  United  States 
are  along  the  sea  shore,  for  the  defense  of  the  seaport 
cities. 

Cologne,  the  largest  city  on  the  Rhine  in  Germany, 
has  also  the  largest  of  the  old  Gothic  churches  in  Europe. 
This  huge  structure  towers  so  much  above  the  other  sur- 
rounding buildings  that  not  only  its  lofty  spires,  but  tlie 
main  body  of  the  church,  are  visible  for  many  miles  over 
the  flat  country  that  surrounds  Cologne.  It  stands  iu 
the  center  of  the  old  city,  on  ground  about  sixty  feet 
above  the  river.  Like  Catholic  cathedrals  generally,  the 
great  entrance  doorway  and  towers  face  the  west,  while 
the  choir  and  great  windows  are  toward  the  rising  sun. 

An  examination  of  the  ground  plan  will  show  that  it 


26  THE    RHINE   RIVER 

takes  the  form  of  the  cross,  the  great  central  nave,  450 
feet  long,  formed  by  two  rows  of  huge  columns,  rising  to 
a  lofty  arch  between,  and  this  crossed  by  a  similar  arch- 
way 282  feet  long,  forming  the  transept — these  constitute 
the  cross.  But  the  main  body  of  the  church  is  formed 
not  only  by  the  lofty  archway  of  the  central  nave,  but 
also  by  four  somewhat  louer  archways  running  parallel  to 
it,  two  on  each  side,  and  formed  also  by  high  arching 
pillars.  Parallel  also  with  the  main  arch  of  the  transept 
are  two  lesser  archways.  The  body  of  the  church  is, 
therefore  formed  by  five  great  archways,  crossed  by  three 
others.  "The  walls  are  150  feet  high,  the  roof  200  feet, 
the  central  tower  over  the  crossing  nearly  360  feet,  and 
the  two  noble  western  towers  512  feet."  A  study  of  the 
ground  plan  and  a  comparison  of  these  dimensions  with 
those  of  large  churches  familiar  to  us,  will  show  that  some 
of  our  large  city  churches  could  be  tucked  away  in  the 
corners  and  side  aisles  of  the  Cologne  cathedral  and 
overlooked. 

It  is  only  by  repeated  visits  and  by  w'alking  about  to 
observe  its  many  parts  that  one  gradually  comes  to  realize 
the  extraordinary  size  of  this  building.  The  church  is 
somewdiat  closely  crowded  by  surrounding  buildings,  but, 
fortunately,  the  front  toward  the  west  looks  down  a  long 
street,  which  furnishes  a  fine  view  of  the  two  mighty 
towers.  "The  interior  is  profoundly  impressive.  Enter- 
ing the  western  portal  the  eye  quickly  glances  along  the 


THE    RHINE   RIVER  27 

grand  avenues  of  pillars  bounding  the  nave,  past  the 
transept  and  into  the  choir,  to  the  steps  of  the  altar,  and 
sees  beyond  the  gorgeous  light  streaming  in  rich  hues 
through  the  distant  eastern  window ;  there  is  nothing  to 
obstruct  the  view.  The  nave  is  about  fifty  feet  wide  be- 
tween the  tall  pillars,  and  rises  145  feet,  having  fifty-six 
pillars  bearing  the  roof,  and  extending  in  splendid  colon- 
nades for  nearly  400  feet.  The  side  aisles  (or  arches) 
are  sixty  feet  high,  the  inner  ones  being  twenty-two  feet 
and  the  outer  twenty-seven  feet."    (Joel  Cook.) 

The  great  doorway  at  the  western  end  is  thirty-one 
feet  wide  and  ninety-three  feet  high,  with  a  gorgeous 
window  of  corresponding  size  above,  the  gift  of  the 
Crown  Prince  of  Germany.  The  lofty  spires  are  among 
the  highest  stone  structures  in  the  world,  but  they  are 
so  massive  and  in  such  harmony  with  the  rest  of  the 
building  that  they  seem  natural  and  appropriate.  The 
Washington  monument  in  our  capital  is  almost  the  only 
stone  structure  that  exceeds  them  in  height,  being  555 
feet  tall.  But  their  unusual  size  is  not  so  wonderful  as 
the  richness  and  abundance  of  their  carved  decorations. 
The  whole  front  of  this  vast  structure,  including  the  tow- 
ers, gables,  windows,  doors,  and  buttresses,  is  richly  dec- 
orated with  finished  carving,  the  finest  work  of  the 
chisel;  and  not  only  the  front,  but  the  whole  exterior  of 
the  church  on  all  sides  is  finished  and  ornamented  with 
perfection  of  detail.     The  interior  also  displays  a  profu- 


28  THE    RHINE   RIVER 

sion  of  carved  workmanship.  The  lofty  fluted  columns, 
massive  but  graceful,  the  overarching  canopy  of  the  great 
nave,  the  numberless  statues  of  saints  and  apostles  with 
which  the  pillars  are  decorated,  the  rich  colors  and  paint- 
ings of  the  stained  glass  windows,  give  a  sense  of  com- 
pleteness to  this,  the  greatest  of  the  many  Gothic  churches 
of  Europe. 

The  history  of  the  construction  of  this  wonderful 
church  is  interesting.  From  the  laying  of  the  corner 
stone  in  1248  to  its  final  completion  in  1880,  a  period  of 
more  than  600  years  passed,  and  yet  the  plan  of  the 
original  architect  was  carried  out  in  essentials  to  the  end. 

The  choir,  or  eastern  part,  of  the  present  church  was 
built  first  and  completed  for  solemn  dedication  in  1322. 
During  the  remainder  of  the  fourteenth  century  the  nave 
and  wings  of  the  transept  were  built.  By  1447  the  south 
tower  was  sufficiently  built  up  to  place  the  bells.  Then 
from  about  1500,  for  three  hundred  years,  little  was  done 
except  to  decorate  the  interior  so  far  as  finished.  Dur- 
ing the  French  occupation  of  the  Rhine  and  of  Cologne, 
about  the  year  1796,  this  building  was  converted  into  a 
hay  barn,  the  lead  of  the  roof  having  been  torn  away,  and 
it  was  reduced  to  a  partial  state  of  ruin.  About  1816  the 
king  of  Prussia  began  to  devise  a  plan  for  restoring  it 
and  the  work  was  begun  in  1823.  From  this  time  dis- 
tinguished architects  took  the  work  in  charge.  From. 
1842  to  1880  large  sums  of  money  were  spent  partly  by 


THE    RHINE   RIVER  29 

government  and  partly  raised  by  private  subscriptions — 
in  all,  $4,500,000 — and  in  the  latter  year  the  completed 
church  was  dedicated  in  the  presence  of  the  German  Em- 
peror and  a  great  assemblage  of  princes.  With  the  ex- 
ception of  lesser  details  it  stands  complete,  as  originally 
designed,  and  is  a  superb  example  of  the  Gothic  archi- 
tecture. Much  of  the  stone  for  its  construction  was  ob- 
tained from  the  red  sandstone  quarries  on  the  side  of  the 
Drachenfels.  "It  is  said  that  the  masonry  used  in  the 
construction  of  this  wonderful  church  would  build  a  vast 
city,  that  its  outer  flying  buttresses  would  construct 
houses  for  ten  thousand  people.  It  has  forests  of  stone 
foliage,  myriads  of  grinning  gargoyles,  enchanting  tur- 
rets, rich  mosaics,  and  airy  spires  surmounting  the  great 
western  towers."     (Joel  Cook.) 

The  purpose  which  led  people  in  the  middle  ages  to 
build  these  vast  cathedral  structures  was  very  different 
from  that  which  prompts  the  building  of  churches  to-day. 
The  Catholic  church  in  those  days  was  an  all-powerful 
institution.  Princes  and  kings  were  obedient  to  its  com- 
mands, and  the  building  of  churches  was  regarded  as  the 
most  honorable  and  praiseworthy  deed,  even  for  the 
greatest  men.  Many  of  the  church  dignitaries,  as  bish- 
ops and  archbishops,  were  themselves  powerful  princes 
and  rulers,  with  ample  revenues,  and  they  were,  of 
course,  inclined  to  use  them  in  building  churches  and 
monasteries.     It  was  an  archbishop,  St.  Engelbert,  who 


30  THE   RHINE   RIVER 

first  conceived  the  idea  of  building  such  a  church  on  this 
spot,  and  one  of  his  successors  laid  the  foundation  stone. 
St.  Engelbert  and  several  other  archbishops  are  buried 
in  the  old  chapels  that  were  built  around  the  choir.  For 
this  cathedral,  like  most  cathedral  churches,  is  a  burial 
place.  The  tombs  of  these  famous  archbishops,  deco- 
rated with  elaborate  monuments  and  reliefs,  fill  several 
of  these  surrounding  chapels. 

This  church  is  also  the  depository  of  notable  relics 
preserved  as  sacred  emblems  by  the  church.  Most  fa- 
mous among  these  are  the  bones  of  the  Magi  or  three 
kings,  who,  following  the  star,  came  from  the  east  to 
worship  the  infant  Lord.  The  tradition  of  how  these  re- 
markable relics  came  to  Cologne  is  interesting.  They  are 
supposed  to  have  been  brought  from  Jerusalem  to  Con- 
stantinople by  the  Empress  Helena,  the  mother  of  Con- 
stantine  the  Great.  They  were  later  brought  to  Milan, 
whence  the  famous  Emperor,  Frederick  Barbarossa,  car- 
ried them  over  the  Alps  to  Germany  and  bestowed  them 
upon  the  great  prelate.  Archbishop  Renold  von  Dassel  of 
Cologne.  For  a  long  time  they  were  preserved  in  the 
chapel  of  the  Magi  in  a  rich  casket,  decorated  with  gold, 
silver  and  costly  stones.  Each  of  these  skulls  is  encircled 
with  a  diamond  crown.  This  chapel  also  contains  an 
altar  with  a  carving  representing  the  Adoration  of  the 
Magi. 

These,  with  other  important  ancient  relics,  are  now 


THE   RHINE   RIVER  31 

preserved  for  greater  safety  in  a  room  called  the  treasury 
near  the  north  transept. 

In  the  chapel  of  St.  Agnes  is  the  large  winged  picture, 
the  Adoration  of  the  Magi,  which  is  regarded  by  critics 
as  one  of  the  great  pictures  illustrating  the  history  of  art. 

The  possession  of  such  famous  relics  as  the  Three 
Kings  was  what  gave  great  reputation  to  a  mediaeval 
church,  and  thousands  of  pilgrims  came  to  visit  them. 

The  stained  windows  with  which  the  church  is  richly 
decorated  represent  many  Bible  scenes. 

A  church  like  the  Cologne  Cathedral  was  not  origi- 
nally built  so  much  for  preaching  services  as  for  great 
ceremonials  and  processions,  such  as  were  common  in 
those  ages,  and  for  which  these  vast  structures  were  well 
adapted.  They  are  also  used  in  their  central  part,  at  the 
crossing  of  the  nave  and  transept,  for  preaching  services. 
The  pulpit  is  built  high  against  one  of  the  great  columns, 
with  an  overhanging  canopy  and  a  winding  stairway  lead- 
ing up  to  it. 

There  are  several  other  interesting  churches  at  Co- 
logne worthy  of  a  visit. 

In  traveling  up  the  Rhine  a  number  of  famous 
churches  may  be  inspected  by  those  interested  in  church 
architecture.  At  Mainz  is  the  very  interesting  old  cathe- 
dral of  St.  Martin,  at  Strassburg  is  a  magnificent  church 
almost  the  equal  of  the  old  Cologne  Cathedral,  and  fa- 
mous in  addition  for  its  wonderful  clock.     Other  cities, 


32  THE    RHINE    RIVER 

as  Coblenz,  Worms,  Basel  and  Frankfort,  have  their  an- 
cient and  noble  churches,  mostly  built  long  before  the 
Reformation.  Even  the  smaller  towns  have  churches 
which  would  do  honor  to  large  cities. 

If  one  wished  only  to  study  church  architecture  a  trip 
up  the  Rhine  would  furnish  abundant  examples  of  gothic 
and  even  of  other  styles  of  architecture.  Indeed,  the 
number  of  churches  which  the  ordinary  sightseer  is  called 
upon  to  visit  and  examine  is  confusing  and  almost  dis- 
tressing. Between  old  castles,  mediaeval  churches  and 
other  ancient  buildings,  one  could  well  nigh  forget  that 
one  lived  in  the  modern  world,  and  could  almost  bring 
back  the  days  vvhen  the  valley  of  the  Rhine  Vv'as  a  high- 
way for  companies  of  robed  and  cowled- churchmen,  and 
for  troops  of  arm.ed  knights  mounted  on  their  war  steeds. 
It  is  rather  a  curious  thought  that  the  course  of  the  Rhine, 
which  in  the  middle  ages  was  remarkable  for  the  number 
and  strength  of  its  robber  castles,  and  during  recent  times 
for  great  fortress  cities,  through  all  the  ages  has  been 
equally  famous  for  its  grand  cathedrals  and  its  great  ec- 
clesiastical buildings  and  principalities. 

The  grand  and  imposing  churches  of  Europe  are  not 
confined  to  the  territory  of  the  Rhine.  In  other  cities  of 
Germany,  as  in  Hamburg,  Magdeburg,  Vienna,  and,  we 
might  say,  in  scores  of  cities,  are  found  beautiful  ancient 
cathedrals.  In  France,  Italy  and  England  al?o  are  such 
medicTsval  structures,  which  testify  to  the  surprising  inter- 


THE   RHINE   RIVER  33 

est  and  enthusiasm  of  those  ages  for  grand  and  impressive 
churches. 

Greatest  and  best  known  of  all  these  massive  build- 
ings is  St.  Peter's  in  Rome,  the  largest  church  in  the 
Christian  world.  It  is  fitting  also  that  Rome  should  have 
the  grandest  church  among  Christian  nations,  since  Rome, 
more  than  any  other  city,  has  been  the  center  of  the 
Christian  church. 

The  ancient  cathedral  of  Notre  Dame,  on  the  island 
in  Paris,  which  formed  the  original  city,  is  described  by 
some  as  the  greatest  of  Gothic  cathedrals.  It  is  one  of 
the  few  ancient  structures  in  Paris  which  have  survived 
the  revolutions,  sieges  and  destructive  changes  which  have 
occurred  in  Paris  during  600  years. 

In  London,  Westminster  Abbey  and  St.  Paul's  cathe- 
dral are  the  two  most  famous  churches  in  the  English- 
speaking  w^orld,  the  former,  the  solemn  burial  place  of  so 
many  poets,  statesmen,  princes  and  kings,  the  latter  also 
a  burial  place,  as  of  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  Andre,  and 
others,  are  imposing  in  simple  and  massive  construction. 

"The  church  of  St.  Sophia*  is,  next  to  the  Pantheon 
at  Rome,  the  most  central  and  historic  edifice  still  stand- 
ing erect.  It  is  now  in  its  fourteenth  century  of  continu- 
ous and  unbroken  use ;  and  during  the  whole  of  that  vast 
epoch,  it  has  never  ceased  to  be  the  imperial  fane 
of  the  Eastern  world,  nor  has  it  ever,  as  the  Pantheon, 


*Xote — At  Constantinople. 


34  THE   RHINE   RIVER 

been  desolate  and  despoiled.  Its  influence  over  the  East- 
ern architecture  has  been  as  wide  as  that  of  the  Pantheon 
over  Western  architecture,  and  it  has  been  far  more  con- 
tinuous. It  was  one  of  the  most  original,  daring,  and 
triumphant  conceptions  in  the  whole  record  of  human 
building;  and  Mr.  Fergusson  declares  it  to  be  internally 
'the  most  perfect  and  beautiful  church  ever  yet  erected 
by  any  Christian  people.'  Its  interior  is  certainly  the 
most  harmonious,  most  complete,  and  least  faulty  of  all 
the  great  domed  and  round-arched  temples.  It  unites 
sublimity  of  construction  with  grace  of  detail,  splendor 
of  decoration  with  indestructible  material.  It  avoids  the 
conspicuous  faults  of  the  great  temples  of  Rome  and  of 
Florence,  whilst  it  is  far  richer  in  decorative  effect  within 
than  our  own  St.  Paul's  or  the  Pantheon  of  Paris.  Its 
glorious  vesture  of  marble,  mosaic,  carving,  and  cast 
metal  is  unsurpassed  by  the  richest  of  the  Gothic  cathe- 
drals, and  is  far  more  enduring.  Though  twice  as  old 
as  Westminster  Abbey,  it  has  suffered  less  dilapidation, 
and  will  long  outlast  it.  Its  constructive  mass  and  its 
internal  ornamentation  far  exceed  in  solidity  the  slender 
shafts,  the  paintings,  and  the  stained  glass  of  the  Gothic 
churches.  In  this  masterly  type  the  mind  is  aroused  by 
the  infinite  subtlety  of  the  construction,  and  the  eye  is 
delighted  with  the  inexhaustible  harmonies  of  a  superb 
design  worked  out  in  most  gorgeous  materials. 

"For  Justinian  and  his  successors  ransacked  the  em- 


THE   RHINE   RIVER  35 

pire  to  find  the  most  precious  materials  for  the  'Great 
Church.'  The  interior  is  still  one  vast  pile  of  marble, 
porphyry,  and  polished  granite,  white  marbles  with  rosy 
streaks,  green  marbles,  blue  and  black,  starred  or  veined 
with  white.  The  pagan  temples  were  stripped  of  their 
columns  and  capitals ;  monoliths  and  colossal  slabs  were 
transported  from  Rome,  and  from  the  Nile,  from  Syria, 
Asia  Minor,  and  Greece,  so  that,  with  the  Pantheon  at 
Rome,  this  is  the  one  example  of  a  grand  structure  of 
ancient  art  which  still  remains  unruined.  The  gilded 
portals,  the  jewels,  pearls  and  gold  of  the  altar,  the  choir 
adornment  of  cedar,  amber,  ivory,  and  silver,  have  been 
long  destroyed  by  the  greedy  soldiers  of  the  Cross;  and 
the  mosaics  above  with  seraphim,  apostles,  prophets,  and 
Christ  in  glory  have  been  covered  up,  but  not  destroyed, 
by  the  fierce  soldiers  of  Mahomet."  (Frederic  Harrison, 
"The  Meaning  of  History.") 

In  America  our  cathedral  churches  are  mostly  built 
on  the  model  of  these  old  Gothic  and  other  churches  in 
Europe.  The  cathedral  of  St.  Patrick,  on  Fifth  Avenue, 
New  York  City,  is  a  Gothic  structure.  In  Montreal,  New 
Orleans  and  other  cities  are  famous  churches  which  re- 
peat the  architecture  of  the  famous  churches  of  France, 
Germany  and  Italy.  In  Mexico,  Southern  California, 
and  even  in  San  Antonio,  Texas,  are  a  number  of  old 
Spanish  churches  and  ruins  built  in  the  style  of  the  Mid- 
dle Age  churches  of  Europe. 


36  THE   RHINE   RIVER 

COMMERCE 

The  Rhine  is  navigable  from  Basle  to  its  delta. 
Above  Basle  are  rapids  and  falls  which  interfere  with 
navigation.  But  on  Lake  Constance  and  the  other  lakes 
of  Switzerland  there  is  much  boating,  especially  excur- 
sion steamboats  for  tourists. 

Above  Strassburg  the  Rhine  is  shallow,  but  from 
Mainz  to  its  mouth  the  river  is  deep  and  broad  and  able 
to  carry  a  heavy  merchandise  in  barges  and  steamers. 
At  the  Lorelei  and  at  the  entrance  of  the  gorge  near 
Bingen  were  once  dangerous  rocks  and  rapids,  but  they 
have  been  blasted  out  and  the  channel  has  been  cleared. 
In  Holland  the  Rhine  divides  up  into  several  branches 
and  as  the  waters  grow  sluggish  near  the  outlet  to  the 
sea,  the  channels  silt  up  and  make  navigation  difficult. 
Amsterdam  and  Rotterdam  have  cut  artificial  channels 
to  the  sea,  which  were  made  deep  and  protected  on  the 
sea  shore  with  heavy  breakwaters. 

The  Rhine  is  favorably  located  to  share  in  the  best 
commerce  of  Europe.  The  mouth  of  the  Rhine,  with  its 
large  commercial  cities,  lies  opposite  to  London,  the  cen- 
ter of  the  world's  commerce.  Over  the  Alps,  through 
Switzerland,  come  the  products  of  Italy  and  the  Mediter- 
ranean countries.  Close  to  the  Rhine  on  the  west  is 
France  and  Belgium,  with  their  manufactures  and  prod- 
ucts easily  brought  to  Cologne,  Coblenz  and  Strassburg. 
On  the  east  are  the  rich  states  of  northern  and  southern 


THE   RHINE   RIVER  37 

Germany,  while  the  Rhine  valley  itself  is  a  very  product- 
ive region. 

For  nearly  two  thousand  years  the  Rhine  has  fur- 
nished the  chief  traffic  route  from  north  to  south  through 
Europe,  connecting  Italy  and  the  Mediterranean  coun- 
tries with  the  Netherlands  and  Great  Britain.  The  gorge 
cut  by  the  Rhine  through  the  low  mountain  range  north 
of  Bingen  furnished  the  only  good  road  from  south  Ger- 
many and  Switzerland  to  Holland.  The  natural  drift 
of  caravan  commerce  along  this  route  during  the  middle 
ages  caused  the  erection  of  the  numerous  robber  castles 
along  the  Rhine,  from  which  the  plundering  knights  and 
barons  could  come  down  on  the  merchantmen  passing 
through  the  valley.  For  many  centuries  later  the  numer- 
ous little  principalities  along  the  river  set  up  tolls  and 
taxes  upon  goods,  and  this  hindered  and  checked  the  flow 
of  trade  along  this  line.  When  the  German  states  were 
united  under  Bismarck  and  Emperor  William  the  First, 
these  taxes  were  abolished  and  the  traffic  on  the  Rhine 
became  free,  as^jx  the  Hudson  and  the  Mississippi. 

One  of  the  interesting  sights  along  the  Rhine  is  a 
great  lumber  raft  400  or  500  feet  long,  floating  down  the 
river,  covered  with  tents  in  which  from  two  to  four  hun- 
dred lumbermen  dwell  while  they  direct  it  down  the  cur- 
rent to  Holland.  There  the  rafts  are  broken  up  and 
sawed  up  into  lumber.  Such  a  raft,  when  it  reaches  Hol- 
land, is  worth  nearly  half  a  million  dollars.  -At  Goblenz, 


38  THE    RHINE   RIVER 

as  one  of  these  great  rafts  floated  under  the  great  bridge 
which  spans  the  river  at  this  place,  we  heard  the  chorus 
of  German  lumbermen  singing  a  song  as  they  passed  the 
city.  These  rafts  are  made  up  on  the  Rhine  from  logs 
which  are  floated  down  the  small  streams  of  the  Black 
Forest  toward  the  main  river. 

The  middle  Rhine  from  Basel  to  Mainz  is  rich  in  agri- 
culture, grain  and  fruits,  and  these  products  are  shipped 
on  the  river.  Along  the  Rhine  valley,  on  the  south-slop- 
ing mountains  and  hillsides  of  the  great  gorge  along  the 
middle  Rhine,  and  bordering  the  lakes  of  Switzerland, 
are  fruitful  vineyards.  Just  north  of  Bingen,  across  the 
stream,  the  whole  mountain  side  is  terraced  with  vine- 
yards, among  which  rises  the  imnosing  monument  of  Ger- 
mania  in  the  Niederwald. 

The  rivers  of  the  Rhine  district  are  famous,  and  con- 
tribute much  to  the  wealth  of  the  people.  The  best  wine- 
producing  district  is  along  the  river  northward  from 
Bingen  and  including  a  strip  of  about  five  miles  wide. 
The  white  wines  of  the  Rhine  are  the  best,  and  the 
yearly  product  was  estimated  some  years  ago  at  $11,664,- 
000.  The  best  red  wines,  on  the  other  hand,  are  pro- 
duced about  Bordeaux  in  France.  A  similar  rich  grape- 
producing  region  is  found  in  the  United  States  along  the 
south  shore  of  Lake  Erie  in  New  York  state. 

The  heaviest  products  produced  and  shipped  along  the 
Rhine  are  coal  and  iron.     Tliere  are  large  coal  deposits 


THE   RHINE   RIVER  39 

along  the  Ruhr  on  the  lower  Rhine,  and  the  cities  in  the 
valley  of  the  Ruhr,  such  as  Essen,  Dortmund  and  Elber- 
feld,  are  near  the  steel-producing  centers  of  Germany,  cor- 
responding to  Pittsburg  in  the  United  States.  Iron  is 
produced  in  Alsace  and  Lorraine  along  the  Moselle  and 
along  the  Rhine,  and  is  much  shipped  on  the  Rhine.  Ag- 
ricultural products  are  also  much  shipped  by  river,  and 
the  manufactures  of  Switzerland  and  of  the  Rhine  cities 
of  Holland  are  freighted  on  the  river  boats.  This  valley 
is  traversed  on  both  sides  by  a  railroad  which  competes 
with  the  boats  for  the  shipment  of  all  varieties  of  goods, 
as  also  along  the  Hudson  and  Mississippi  and  other  riv- 
ers. A  few  years  ago  the  shipment  on  the  river  boats 
was  estimated  at  a  million  tons,  and  is  now  far  greater. 

The  large  tributary  streams,  as  the  Moselle,  the  Main 
and  the  Neckar,  are  navigable  for  small  steamers.  There 
are  also  three  canals  connecting  the  Rhine  commerce  with 
the  Danube,  the  Rhone  and  the  Seine,  thus  bringing  the 
Rhine  into  direct  communication  with  Bavaria  and  Aus- 
tria and  with  southern  and  central  France.  Indeed,  the 
Rhine-Rhone  canal  connects  with  the  Mediterranean 
without  crossing  the  Alps. 

Perhpps  the  most  important  of  all  trade  on  the  Rhine 
is  the  tourist  traffic.  During  the  summer  months  espe- 
cially travelers  from  all  the  adjacent  lands,  of  Germany, 
Holland  and  France,  and  still  more  from  England,  Amer- 
ica, and  other  countries,  fill  the  boats  and  hotels  along 


40  THE   RHINE   RIVER 

this  great  tourist  route.  It  would  be  difficult  to  think  of 
a  more  interesting  and  varied  excursion  than  a  leisurely 
summer  journey  through  the  quaint  cities  of  Holland, 
up  through  Cologne  and  the  Rhine  gorge  to  Heidelberg 
and  Strassburg,  and  on  to  the  Swiss  lakes,  with  the  pos- 
sible continuation  over  the  Alps  into  the  lakes  and  cities 
of  northern  Italy.  Many  years  ago  it  was  estimated  that 
these  sightseers  along  the  Rhine  numbered  between  one 
and  two  million  yearly,  and  the  numbers  have  steadily 
increased. 

A  number  of  bridges  cross  the  lower  Rhine,  as  at 
Mainz,  Coblenz,  Cologne  and  other  cities.  Some  of  these 
are  bridges  of  boats,  arranged  so  that  a  section  of  them 
can  swing  out  of  the  way  to  allow  a  steamer  or  log  raft 
to  pass.  Others  are  supplied  with  turn  bridges  to  allow 
boats  to  pass. 

The  other  leading  rivers  of  Germany,  as  the  Elbe, 
the  Oder  and  the  Vistula,  are,  like  the  Rhine,  important 
highways  of  navigation.  The  Elbe  especially  is  impor- 
tant, being  navigable  to  Prague  in  Bohemia  and  having 
many  important  cities  on  it,  such  as  Prague,  Dresden, 
Magdeburg  and  Hamburg.  Hamburg,  in  fact,  sixty  miles 
above  the  mouth  of  the  Elbe,  is  the  central  seaport  of 
Germany  and  of  northern  Europe,  and  the  outlet  of  the 
Elbe  toward  the  North  Sea  is  much  more  important  than 
that  of  the  Rhine  for  Germany.  The  Elbe  is  also  directly 
connected  with  Berlin,  the  commercial  center  of  Ger- 


THE   RHINE   RIVER  41 

many,  and  canals  from  Berlin  extend  also  to  the  Oder. 
The  amount  of  heavy  produce,  agricultural  and  manufac- 
turing carried  on  these  rivers  and  canals  of  Germany  is 
very  large  and  important. 

The  Seine,  the  Loire,  the  Garonne,  and  the  Rhone,  in 
France,  also  supply  a  network  of  navigable  waters,  con- 
nected by  canals.  But  in  Europe  the  Danube  is  the  larg- 
est of  navigable  streams,  and  since  ancient  times  has  been 
a  natural  route  of  traffic  between  southeastern  Europe 
and  the  Rhine  regions.  One  of  the  old  routes  from  India 
was  across  the  Black  Sea  to  the  mouth  of  the  Danube, 
and  up  this  stream  to  Austria  and  Germany.  The  Dan- 
ube, even  more  than  the  Rhine,  passes  through  many 
countries,  among  people  speaking  several  languages,  as 
German,  Hungarian,  Roumanian,  Bulgarian,  etc.  The 
Danube  also  has  required  a  large  expenditure  for  im- 
provement. In  its  upper  course,  above  Vienna,  the  cur- 
rent has  been  narrowed  and  deepened  and  near  Vienna 
the  channel,  which  runs  among  many  islands,  in  a  marshy 
country,  has  been  channeled  out  to  give  better  passage 
for  large  vessels.  Through  Hungary  there  is  a  vast 
traffic  in  the  roofed  steamboats,  as  railroads  have  not 
been  built  so  extensively  in  Hungary  as  along  the  Rhine. 
The  Danube  and  its  tributaries  in  Hungary  are  subject 
to  heavy  floods,  and  banks,  or  levees,  like  those  of  the 
Rhine  in  Holland  and  of  the  Mississippi  in  the  United 
States,  have  been  built  along  the  channel  to  hold  the 


42  THE   RHINE   RIVER 

floods  from  overspreading  the  lowlands.  After  leaving 
Belgrade  the  Danube  cuts  its  own  way  through  great  hills 
and  mountain  ranges  and  through  a  succession  of  gorges, 
the  last  and  greatest  of  which  is  called  the  Iron  Gate, 
where  the  Carpathian  mountains  are  broken  through. 
Here  a  great  shelf,  or  reef  of  rock,  once  caused  a  dan- 
gerous rapid.  But  the  rocks,  as  in  the  Rhine,  have  been 
blasted  out  and  a  deep  channel  for  vessels  provided.  At 
its  mouth  the  Danube  forms  a  delta,  splitting  up  into 
a  series  of  branches. 

The  Volga  and  the  other  large  rivers  of  southern 
Russia,  like  the  Mississippi  in  the  United  States,  flowing 
through  a  rich  alluvial  farming  region,  are  important 
avenues  of  steamboat  and  barge  traffic. 

On  the  whole,  the  rivers  of  Europe  are  not  so  large 
nor  so  well  adapted  by  nature  for  navigation  as  the  iVIis- 
sissippi  and  its  tributaries.  The  Great  Lakes  and  the 
St.  Lawrence  also  furnish  even  a  more  important  water 
traffic  than  the  Mississippi.  Europe  has  also  a  large 
number  of  short  rivers  with  tidal  estuaries  which  are  of 
the  greatest  value  in  shipping.  Such  are  the  Thames 
with  London,  the  Clyde  with  Glasgow,  the  Tagus  with 
Lisbon,  Nantes  and  Bordeaux  in  France  with  their  estu- 
ary rivers.  These  rivers,  like  the  Hudson,  are  made  im- 
portant by  the  estuaries  which,  with  the  inflowing  tides, 
make  them  deep  and  commodious  harbors  for  shipping. 
The  commerce  of  the  Rhine  at  its  mouth  is  obstructed  by 


THE   RHINE   RIVER  43 

the  deltas,  as  in  the  case  also  of  the  Danube,  the  Rhone, 
the  Po,  and  the  Mississippi. 

The  valley  of  the  Rhine  river  from  its  sources  in  the 
Alps  to  the  delta  in  Holland,  has  witnessed  many  of  the 
most  important  events  in  the  history  of  Europe  since  be- 
fore the  birth  of  Christ.  Julius  Caesar,  during  his  cam- 
paigns in  Gaul,  found  the  Teutons  pressing  westward 
across  the  Rhine.  Csesar  himself  built  a  bridge  across  the 
Rhine  and  fought  against  the  Germans.  From  that  time 
on  there  was  a  fierce  conflict  of  races  for  the  possession  of 
this  rich  valley.  The  great  Emperor  Charlemagne  pressed 
his  conquests  eastward  across  the  Rhine,  and  during  the 
later  middle  ages  a  large  number  of  small  principalities 
sprung  up  with  their  feudal  castles  commanding  the  val- 
ley and  its  commerce.  In  Switzerland,  around  its  sources 
and  mountain  lakes,  there  were  frequent  struggles  in 
maintaining  the  independence  of  the  Swiss  against  the 
Burgundians  on  the  west,  and  the  Austrians  on  the  east. 
The  stories  of  William  Tell  and  of  Arnold  Winkleried, 
and  of  the  wars  against  Charles  the  Bold  of  Burgundy, 
illustrate  these  Swiss  wars  of  independence.  In  the  delta 
lands  around  the  mouth  of  the  Rhine  the  Dutch,  under 
William  the  Silent,  fought  out  also  a  great  war  of  Inde- 
pendence against  the  Spaniards.  The  central  portions 
of  the  Rhine  have  long  been  in  dispute  between  France 
and  Germany.  More  than  two  hundred  years  ago  Louis 
XIV  succeeded  in  capturing  Alsace  and  Lorraine  and 


44  THE   RHINE    RIVER 

made  them  a  part  of  France.  They  remained  a  part  of 
the  French  territory  until  1871,  when  the  armies  under 
King  William  and  Bismarck  captured  Paris  and  com- 
pelled the  French  to  give  them  back  to  Germany.  In 
celebration  of  this  great  success  of  the  Germans,  the 
Niederwald  Monument  was  set  up  across  from  Bingen  to 
declare  to  the  world  that  Germany  was  in  full  possession 
of  both  sides  of  the  Rhine. 

During  the  successful  campaigns  of  Napoleon  the 
First  the  whole  Rhine  territory  on  both  sides  was  in  full 
control  of  the  French,  and  French  soldiers  even  stabled 
their  horses  in  the  famous  cathedrals  and  churches  along 
the  Rhine.  But  with  the  overthrow  of  Napoleon  at 
Waterloo  in  1815  the  Rhine  provinces  were  restored  to 
Prussia. 

It  was  at  Worms  on  the  middle  Rhine  that  Martin 
Luther  met  Charles  the  Fifth  and  the  princes  of  Ger- 
many in  the  great  diet  at  the  outbreak  of  the  Reforma- 
tion. These  brief  statements  show  that  the  greatest  men 
of  Europe  for  two  thousands  years  have  carried  out  their 
ambitious  enterprises  in  the  Rhine  Valley  . 

At  Mainz,  on  the  Rhine,  is  a  monument  to  Gutenberg, 
the  inventor  of  printing,  and  in  various  cities  along  the 
Rhine  are  monuments  of  many  other  eminent  men  whose 
homes  are  in  the  valley. 

The  two  most  remarkable  literary  men  of  Germany, 
Goethe  and  Schiller,  were  born  near  the  Rhine — Goethe 


THE   RHIxNE   RIVER  45 

at  Frankfort  and  Schiller  near  the  Neckar,  and  their  early 
lives  are  identified  with  the  Rhine  regions  in  many  ways. 
Many  of  their  works,  in  fact,  deal  with  characters  and 
events  connected  with  the  Rhine  valley. 

From  the  earliest  ages  the  Rhine  has  been  celebrated 
in  legend  and  in  myth,  more  perhaps  than  any  other  river 
in  Europe.  The  Nibellungen  Song,  which  describes  the 
exploits  of  Siegfried,  centers  chiefly  in  the  lowland  of 
the  Rhine,  in  the  Drachenfels,  and  at  Worms.  One  of 
the  most  famous  of  all  myths,  the  William  Tell  story,  has 
been  worked  out  with  such  success  in  Schiller's  drama 
of  William  Tell,  that  it  has  made  Lake  Lucerne  in  Switz- 
erland one  of  the  most  famous  regions  in  the  world. 
Some  of  the  most  familiar  popular  legends  of  the  German 
people,  like  the  Lorelei,  belong  wholly  to  the  Rhine. 
Even  some  of  the  most  familiar  poems  in  the  English, 
like  "Bingen  on  the  Rhine,"  and  "Bishop  Hatto,"  are  Eng- 
lish renderings  of  the  Rhine  stories.  The  most  famous, 
also,  of  the  German  national  songs  is  the  "Watch  on  the 
Rhine,"  which  best  expresses  the  patriotic  feeling  of  the 
whole  German  race  toward  the  Rhine. 


HOW        TO        TEACH 

MANUAL  SERIES 

Hints  and  Suggestions  for  Wide-Awake  Teachers 


Many  go  through  life  doing  things  in  a  bungling  way  because  no 
better  or  easier  methods  are  pointed  out  to  them.  The  easier  way 
may  be  called  a  device  or  an  invention. 

Some  discourage  the  use  of  special  devices  in  teaching,  but  the 
person  who  rejects  all  new  ideas  and  methods  which  the  experience 
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who  refused  to  divide  the  grain  in  a  bag  when  he  rode  his  horse  to 
mill,  but  put  a  heavy  stone  in  one  end  of  the  bag  to  balance  the  grain 
on  the  other  side,  because  this  had  been  done  by  his  predecessors. 

The  authors  of  these  little  works  give  hints  and  suggestions  that 
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HOW  TO  TEACH  HISTORY.  History  is  usually  not  well  taught.  It  is 
easy  and  perhaps  the  most  interesting  of  studies  IF  the  teacher  knows  her  subject 
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HOW  TO  TEACH  READING.  In  this  manual  is  given  ten  great  steps  in 
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Third  Year,  Numbers  above  100  Fourth  Year,  Fractions 

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How  to  Decorate  the  Schoolroom  How  to  Teach  Fishes,  Shell-fish 
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How  to  Teach  Bugs,  Beetles  and  How  to  Teach  Birds 

Locusts  How  to  Teach  Butterflies  and  Bees 

How  to  Teach  Nature  Study  How  to  Teach  About  Trees 

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A.  Flanagan  Co.  Chicago 


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